Before Aya
by Tennyo no Ame
Summary: before Aya there was Ceres, and her sadness.


Ok, this is my very first fic, so I know it's going to suck. -_-;; Please don't be too critical! Have pity on my soul! Teehee, enjoy.  
  
*~*~*  
  
Ceres stared at the fisherman with cold eyes.  
"How long are you going to keep me here as your wife, Mikage?" she asked softly.  
Mikage didn't respond. He didn't even look up. He just kept staring down at his little piece of bark, carving the words 'For my lovely tennyo...' into it. Ceres narrowed her eyes.  
"I asked you a question." She said, "How long will you keep me here?"  
Mikage stood up from his chair and placed the bark on a shelf. "I believe that you already know the answer, my lovely tennyo."  
Ceres's lip quivered as she fought to keep her anger from surfacing. How could this stupid, weak fisherman keep her on Earth, when her very life depended on returning to the heavens?  
"You can't keep me here forever, Mikage..." Ceres murmured, and she walked out of the house, leaving the human to think about his decision.  
Ceres drew in the crisp ocean air and drooped her shoulders. It had been less than two months ago, that she had lost her gossamer robe and become the fisherman's wife. And according to Mikage, many, many more agonizing years were ahead. She walked over to a nearby tree and dropped down at its base. Ceres folded her knees in front of her and rested her chin on them. Silent tears crept down her face as her fate played over and over again in her head.  
"This can't be true..." Ceres whispered to herself, "It just can't be happening..." She hugged her knees to her as choking sobs began to take over her body. Her beautiful black hair fell around her face, hiding her yellow eyes, which were now filled with sadness.  
Suddenly, a strong hand grasped her shoulder. Ceres looked up to see who dared to disturb her in her moment of despair. Mikage stood before her, clearly unmoved by her emotion.  
"It's time to come inside," He murmured, holding out his other hand. Ceres grasped it with both hands and pulled herself to her feet. Mikage kept hold of her hand and led her into the house. Before she stepped inside, she stole one last look of the ocean. The sun was setting; a beautiful view, and yet a sad symbol. The life of Ceres, the beautiful tennyo, was ending, and her knew life of misery was only beginning. Ceres sighed as she allowed herself to be led into Mikage's bedroom. Mikage let go of her hand, and she stood as rigid as a statue.  
The room was dark, but from what the tennyo could see, there were roses and other assorted flowers all around the small room. Rose petals were scattered across his bed, where Mikage now sat.  
Ceres clutched the front of her kimono and backed away slowly. Mikage quickly rose to his feet and grabbed Ceres's hands. He led her over to the bed and forced her to sit down. She flinched as he brought his lips to her neck. She put her hands on his chest and pushed him away gently.  
"Please don't..." She whispered as hot tears started to make their way down her face.  
But, he ignored her pleas, and forced himself on her. This is only the beginning, Ceres thought to herself as she closed her eyes to block the tears.  
  
~*(10 agonizing years later)*~  
  
Ceres watched her three children running around on the ocean shore. Waves crashed onto the shore while the children ran away from them, laughing gleefully. Ayane, the oldest, smiled and asked her mother to come and play with them. Ceres smiled back but stayed sitting on the sand.  
"I'm just going to watch you, alright?" Ceres replied to her daughter, "I'll play with you later."  
Ayane nodded and resumed playing with her younger siblings. A particularly big wave came crashing on the shore. Ayane and the second oldest child, Kazu, ran back to the beach. But, Yumi, the very youngest of the three, got caught in the sand and tripped. She began crying the instant she hit the ground. Ceres leapt to her feet and ran to her daughter. A fallen angel, Ceres thought with a sad smile. She picked up her daughter and carried her away from the water. Ceres held Yumi and kissed her forehead to calm her.  
"It's alright," she cooed, rocking her daughter gently.  
Yumi's cries began to slow down and finally stopped. She sat down on the beach next to her mother and played in the sand. Ceres looked at her little girl. Even at such a young age, Ceres could tell that she would look like her. Yumi had yellow eyes that gave her a mysterious look. Her skin was fair and her hair was black like a winter night. She looked like Ceres in almost every way. Suddenly, Ceres heard her daughter singing...  
"Tennyo took back her gossamer robe and went back to Heaven. Leaving behind her husband and child..." came the little girl's voice.  
Ceres's jaw dropped slightly as she stared at her daughter. "What..." She stammered, "What was that?"  
Yumi met her gaze. "It's a song, mother."  
"Where did you learn it?" Ceres asked, trying not to lose her cool demeanor.  
"I...I don't know," she murmured, "I heard it in my head."  
Ceres stood up quickly and her heartbeat sped up. She walked towards the house that she had been kept in for ten years. It would have been enough if the song had just been the word tennyo and gossamer robe, but it had included the phrase 'Tennyo took back her gossamer robe...' What did it mean 'took back her gossamer robe?' Nobody had taken it... And, Ceres's children had no idea that she was a tennyo. Ceres only had one idea of what to do. She walked inside and glared at her husband who was drinking a strong smelling alcohol.  
"What do you know about my gossamer robe, Mikage?" She asked with a clear, cold voice. She curled her fists at her side.  
He looked up and met her gaze. His eyes were filled with fear.  
She understood why he was so afraid. "You have it, don't you?" she asked, her voice shaking, "You have my robe, you bastard!"  
She lunged at him, and grabbed his neck. Ceres knew that killing Mikage wouldn't help her cause, but at least it would ease her rage. Unexpectedly, he reached out and slapped her across her face. A small cry of surprise escaped her lips, and she fell back, staring at the man that had struck her.  
"Heh. You're not as strong as you used to be," he mumbled, "Listen, wench. You don't have your Tennyo powers anymore. You hardly have any life left in you." he smirked. "Without your robe you're nothing but a pathetic excuse for woman."  
Ceres glared at her husband as she ran her fingertips over the welt on her cheek.  
"If you try to leave," he continued, "I'll kill you." He bent down next to her and whispered, "You know I can." He got to his feet and left the room.  
Ceres stayed on the ground where she had fallen, shaking. How dare he? she thought. By now she wasn't shaking from the pure shock that her husband would strike her, but now from the rage that he would strike a Tennyo. A Tennyo was a celestial being, an angel, and he dared to hurt her? If she ever got back her gossamer robe back, Ceres thought, she would sure as hell kill him, sooner or later.  
Then, she remembered. Mikage had been wrong. Ceres hadn't lost all of her powers, along with her robe. Sure, she had lost her fighting powers, the ones that allowed her to kill another without lifting a finger... but she could still use charms and subtle incantations.  
It was at that moment that Ceres made a decision. She had to find her gossamer robe. She had to leave this horrible place. And she had to do it tonight.  
  
~*(Later that night)*~  
  
Ceres opened her eyes slowly, the instant she heard her husband's slow and steady breathing that told that he was asleep. Very carefully, she slipped out of the bed and walked over to her husband's side of the bed. She put her hand over him and murmured an incantation that would put him into a deep sleep. It would only last for a few hours, but that was all the time Ceres needed to find her robe.  
She crept out of her room and into the kitchen. She looked around the small house. Where do I start? Ceres asked herself. Suddenly the answer was clear. A spell, she thought, a revealing spell.  
Ceres closed her eyes and murmured an incantation that would let her feel the energy of her gossamer robe. Suddenly, she opened her eyes. She felt a dull sensation in her fingertips. Yes, she thought, my gossamer robe is close. Ceres walked around the house, but the sensation in her hands only decreased. Finally, she decided to go outside. The instant she left the house, the feeling in her fingertips strengthened. It was like electricity.  
She walked along the shoreline, and was suddenly consumed by her thoughts. She had lived on Earth for ten years. Would it feel weird to leave this place? she wondered. The sensation was stronger, and now consumed her hands. No, she quickly answered herself; this place was a prison, not a home. She would never miss the feeling of entrapment. But what about her children? They were half human, and thus didn't belong in heaven. Ceres sighed. Despite her efforts to stay emotionally detached from her children, she couldn't help but love them deeply. She didn't want to leave them all alone... but she had no choice. She had to leave.  
Suddenly she came to the base of a beautiful tree. It was tall, and seemed to be very old. She brought her delicate fingertips to the tree's bark. The instant they made contact, an electric feeling went throughout her entire body. Her eyes widened in hope and surprise. Her robe was right here! It had been for all of these years!  
Ceres walked around the tree, trying to find a weak spot in the bark. Finally, she came to a soft spot. The bark was moist and thin, as if it wasn't meant to be there. Ceres peeled the bark back carefully, and a beautiful pale light came shining through. Ceres's lips curved into a smile, and her eyes twinkled with tears of joy. She grabbed her robe with tentative fingers and held it in front of her. It was still as beautiful as ever. She slipped it on with a smile, enjoying the familiar feeling of such fine silk against her skin.  
Ceres was just about to return to the heavens, when she heard a small voice behind her.  
"Muh-Mother?" Came her youngest daughter's voice.  
Ceres's smile faded, and her eyes lost their glimmer. "Yumi," she said, almost in a whisper, "I have to go..."  
"Mother take me with you!" Yumi cried, with tears in her eyes, "I'll be a tennyo, like you! Please, take me with you, Mother!" The little girl ran to her mother, but Ceres quickly ran out onto the water, gliding gracefully on the surface.  
She turned to look at her youngest daughter one more time. "I'm so sorry," she murmured.  
And then she descended to the heavens, with tears of joy in her eyes, and feelings of regret in her heart.  
  
*~*~*  
  
*sniff sniff* Ok, maybe it didn't suck so bad after all... heh, but I guess that's up to you guys to decide. ^_^ Please R & R. Arigato!!! teehee. 


End file.
